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January 08, 2013

THE WEEKLY QUIZ - 2

6TH JANUARY - 12 JANUARY

NATION & POLITICS

(1) Name the NDA leader who has called Mohan Bhagwat's remark on marriages as "shallow".

Subramanyam Swami

Parkash Singh Badal

Sharad Yadav

Raj Thackeray

JD(U) leader and NDA convener Sharad Yadav has slammed the comments made by the RSS chief where he referred to marriages as 'social contract' wherein the duty of the husband is to protect his wife whereas that of the latter is to do domestic chores.

(2) Who is M M Pallam Raju?

He is the Union Minister for Sports.

He is the Union Minister for Human Resource Development.

He is the Union Minister for Telecom.

He is the Union Minister for Aviation.

Pallam Raju, the Human Resource Development has said that gender sensitizing and respect for women will be included in the NCERT syllabus soon.

(3) Which district in West Bengal reported clashes between TMC and CPM workers this Tuesday?

South 24 Pargana

North 24 Pargana

Midnapur

Purulia

On Tuesday, hundreds of workers from the Trinamool Congress and the CPM clashed with each other in the South 24 Pargana district leaving many injured.

(4) Who is the chief of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS)?

Raj Thackeray

Uddhav Thackeray

Bindu Madhav Thackeray

Jaidev Thackeray

Raj Thackeray, the MNS leader has said that migrants are responsible for the rise of crimes in Delhi.

(5) The assassins of which former PM were honoured by the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandak Committeee (SGPC) on Sunday?

Indira Gandhi

Rajiv Gandhi

Lal Bahadur Shastri

Morarji Desai

Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her bodyguards - Beant Singh and Satwant Singh on 31 October, 1984. They along with another conspirator Kehar Singh were hanged in 1989.

(6) This party withdrew its support to the BJP led Jharkhand government reducing it to a minority. Which party are we taking about?

Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM)

All Jharkhand Student Union (AJSU)

Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)

Janata Dal (United)

JMM leader Hemant Soren has said that his party has withdrawn its support to Arjun Munda government over rotation of the CM post. Both parties have the same number of MLAs in the assembly - 18.

(7) Which of the following God-man has stirred a controversy for suggesting that the Delhi gang rape victim was responsible for the whole incident as much as her rapists?

Sri Sri Ravishanker

Swami Nithyanand

Ramdev Baba

Asharam Bapu

Asharam Bapu has said that the victim should have asked the rapists to have mercy on her. Also, he said that the whole incident has led to a national 'anti-men' campaign.

(8) Name the prestigious technical institute that has increased its annual fees by Rs. 40000.

Indian Institute of Sciences (IISc)

All Indian Institute of Medical Institute (AIMS)

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)

Indian Institute of Management (IIM)

IITs have increased the fees by Rs 40000 after the meeting of the council at IIT-Delhi.

(9) The Delhi High Court has ordered daily hearing of paternity case against a former CM. Whom are we referring to?

Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank

N D Tiwari

B C Khanduri

Bhagat Singh Koshiyari

N D Tiwari is a former CM of both Uttar Pradesh and Uttaranchal. A youth had filed a paternity suit to declare Tiwari as his father. Tiwari is also accused of getting sex workers in the AP assembly when he was the governor.

(10) Which south Indian city is hosting the 11th Bharatiya Pravasi Divas?

Vishakapattinam

Mysore

Kochi

Coimbatore

The Bharatiya Pravasi Divas for the year 2013 was held in Kochi. It is held each year on 9th January to mark the contribution of the overseas Indian community to the development of India. The day marks Gandhiji's entry in India from South Africa.

(11) A girl tried to commit suicide in the presence of the CM of her state when he was attending the function - Janta ki Darbar mein Mukya Mantri. In which state did this incident take place?

Bihar

Maharashtra

Goa

Mizoram

Nitesh Kumar - the CM of Bihar was attending the function - Janata ki Durbar mein Mukhya Mantri when a differently abled girl slashed her hand as she was not getting opportunities to learn computers.

(12) Which of the following mobile manufacturer is under the scanner of the Income Tax department for tax evasion?

Samsung

Nokia

Motorola

Sony

Officials from the IT department searched the premises of Nokia in Chennai and other locations.

(13) A regiment of the Pakistani army raided an Indian check post in Jammu & Kashmir and killed two jawans. In which sector did this clash took place?

Kargil

Krishnagiri

Poonch

Mendhar

The Pakistani soldiers raided the Mendhar sector and brutally killed two jawans - Lance Naik Hemraj Singh and Lance Naik Sudhakar Singh. The raiding party beheaded one jawan and took away the head as a trophy.

(14) Against which Congress spokesperson has TV actor and BJP leader Smriti Irani filed a defamation suit in a Delhi Court?

Abhisek Manu Singhvi

Jayanti Natrajan

Girija Vyas

Sanjay Nirupam

Smriti filed the case against Sanjay Nirupam for comments he made about her in a TV debate.

(15) Enforcement Directorate has attached assets worth hundreds of crores allegedly belonging to a political leader in South India?

B S Yeddyurappa

Jagan Reddy

J Jayalalitha

Dayanidhi Maran

The ED has attached assets worth Rs. 147 crores under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) allegedly belonging to the Jagan Mohan Reddy. Earlier it had served attachment order worth Rs. 51 crores and Rs. 71 crores in this case.(16) Who inaugurated GIFT - Gujarat International Finance Tec-City?

Shankar Singh Vaghela

Lal Krishna Advani

Keshubahi Patel

Narendra Modi

Narendra Modi, the CM of Gujarat inaugurated GIFT - the tallest building in the state which has a height of 129 m and has 29 floors.

(17) Which of the former DGP of Karnataka got temporary relief when his plea against a High Court order was allowed by the Supreme Court?

A R Infant

Sri Kumar

Lakrukhuma Pachau

Shankar M Bidari

Shankar M Bidari was forced to retire by the High Court after being blasted for his role in commanding the Special Task Force that hunted down sandalwood smuggler Veerappan.

(18) Who is the Union Secretary for Water Resource?

Narendra Chandra

Vinod Kumar Duggal

Dhurv Vijay Singh

Ramaswamy R Iyer

In a meeting of the Cauvery Action Committee (CAC) headed by Dhruv Vijay Singh - the Union Secretary for Water Resource, the plea filed by Tamil Nadu asking Karnataka to release 11 tmcft of Kaveri River has been rejected.

(19) Who is the governor of West Bengal?

H R Bharadwaj

Kamla Beniwal

M K Narayanan

Syed Ahmed

The governor of Bengal - M K Narayanan has rapped the Mamata government over the deteriorating law and order situation in the state caused by clashes between TMC and Left workers.

(20) A girder collapse killed one construction worker at a metro site in a southern metro. Which city are we referring to?

Chennai

Bangalore

Thiruvananthapuram

Hyderabad

Pimpal Saw - a worker from Bihar died in a construction tragedy in Allandur in Chennai.(21) Which central armed police force lost 10 of its men in a Naxal attack in Latehar district of Jharkhand?

Central industrial Security Force (CISF)

Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF)

Special Frontier Force (SFF)

National Security Guards (NSG)

The Naxals attacked and killed the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel after committing brutal atrocities like gouging of eyes, slashing of tongues etc. Some of the bodies were found to have explosive devices surgically implanted in them.

(22) With which of the following country were border talks held in New Delhi?

Nepal

Pakistan

Bangladesh

China

National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon and Dia Bingguo of China held talks to discuss bilateral issues including the Sino-Indian border.

(23) Name the veteran politician who joined the National People's Party on 6th January.

Tariq Anwar

V C Shukla

P A Sangma

Amar Singh

Former CM of Meghalaya - P A Sangma has resigned from NCP to contest the Presidential polls. He is said to takeover as the President of the NPP and fight for the cause of the tribals in the country.

(24) Who amongst the following is the main accused in the 2008 Bangalore blasts?

Farooq Siddiqi

Akbaruddin Owaisi

Riyaz Bhatkal

Abdul Naseer Madani

The prime accused in the 2008 Bangalore blasts, Abdul Naseer Madani whose health is deteriorating since last few months, has been allowed to undergo treatment by a court. He is the leader of the People's Democratic Party and has a strong base amongst the Muslim community in Kerala.

(25) Which of the following central armed forces was given the job of guarding 26/11 terrorist Ajmal Kasab?

Border Security Force (BSF)

Sashasthra Seema Bal (SSB)

Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP)

Special Protection Group (SPG)

The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) was given the job of protecting Kasab while he was lodged in Arthur Road Prison in Mumbai. The Central government has decided to waiver Rs. 21 crore - the cost incurred in the last 4 years on this task.

(26) Which Union Territory has made overcoat compulsory for girls?

Andaman and Nicobar Islands

Delhi

Daman and Diu

Pondicherry

The Pondicherry government took this extreme step after a girl was kidnapped and allegedly raped. Several organizations have criticized this decision.

(27) A fire at an Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) terminal resulted in the death of 3 people. Which place are we referring to?

Sewri

Hazira

Panipat

Barauni

Fire broke out in the Hazira terminal in Gujarat. Three people died and 50 lakh litres of petrol was burnt.

(28) Which former Army general has accused the UPA government of planting spy bugs in his house?

V K Singh

Deepak Kapoor

Niraml Chander Vij

Joginder Jaswangt Singh

Early this week, two jawans and a major of the army visited the house of former general V K Singh to change telephone lines when he was not in his home. The general has said that the real motive was to plant spy bugs in his house as he was taking on the government on several issues.

INTERNATIONAL

(1) Who is the President of Syria?

Bashar al-Assad

Hamid Karzai

Mahmood Ahmedinejad

Asif Ali Zardari

Addressing his nation after a long gap, Bashar al-Assad has asked his countrymen to defend the nation against rebels whom he termed 'terrorists'.

(2) An ex American commander in Afghanistan has claimed in his memoirs that relations between the Pentagon and the White House have turned sour after Obama came to power. Name him.

David McKiernan

David Rodriguez

Stanley McChrystal

David Petreaus

Stanley McChrystal has said that Pentagon-White House relations soured since Obama came to power in his book - My Share of the Task: A Memoir.

(3) Which country mentioned below is not amongst the top five nations dubbed as the hub of illegal migrants in the UK?

China

South Africa

India

Nigeria

The top five countries are India, Pakistan, China, Nigeria, Bangladesh and does not include South Africa.

(4) According to the Global Language Survey, which is the top name of the year 2012?

Malala

Obama

Psy

Kate Middleton

Malala is the top name of the year 2012. Malala Yousafzai is an activist from Pakistan who was shot by the Taliban for her views on freedom for women.

(5) Name the disease which has resulted in the death of over 100 people in the US in the last few days.

Malaria

Flu

Measles

SARS

The outbreak of Flu epidemic has led to over 100 deaths in the United States. Nearly 20 odd states and New York City has witnessed high flu activity said reports.

(6) Which of the following South Asian country's lawmakers voted to impeach the Chief Justice?

Sri Lanka

Bangladesh

Pakistan

Nepal

The Parliament of Sri Lanka overwhelmingly voted to impeach the country's first woman Chief Justice - Shirani Bhandaranayake who is accused of accumulating disproportionate assets. Many see this as the government's move to get the judiciary under its control.

(7) Rabbi Ovadia Yosef is the chief spiritual advisor of which Israeli political party?

Yisrael Beiteinu

Kadima

Likud

Shas

The Rabbi who is the spiritual advisor of the orthodox Shas party is currently admitted in a hospital.

(8) Name the secret operation in which the Scotland Yards recovered artifacts bearing images of Hindu Gods across London.

Operation Ganesh

Operation Maxim

Operation Checkmate

Operation Bharat

The recovered items in Operation Maxim include a ring in the shape of an owl, a statue of Lord Ganesha and several coins bearing Sanskrit writings. Police suspect that these may have been smuggled out of India.

(9) According to reports, which airbase in Northern Syria has been captured by the rebels fighting the government headed by Bashar al-Assad on 11th January?

Taftanaz

Aleppo

Kweires

Mannagh

The rebels who control most of the territory in the north have captured the Taftanaz air base, the largest in this part of the country. Meanwhile UN-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahmini has said that the Syrian civil war may not end so soon.

(10) Who is the President of Israel?

Ariel Sharon

Benjamin Netanyahu

Shimon Peres

Golda Mier

Shimon Peres - the President of Israel has warned that if the Prime minister Netanyahu does not talk to PIO President Abbas then an uprising may start in Palestine against the Israelis.

(11) The Head of the State of which of the following countries appointed around 20 per cent women to the consultative Shura Council?

Jordan

United Arab Emirates

Kuwait

Saudi Arabia

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has appointed 30 women to the Shura Council which is a consultative body.

(12) Which communist leader marked his birthday by sending a kg of candy to every child in his country?

Kim Jong-un

Xi Jinping

Raul Castro

Truong Tan Sang

The Supreme Leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-un continued the tradition started by his grand-father.

(13) Which of the following countries witnessed wildfires throughout this week?

Indonesia

Australia

Uganda

Argentina

Large parts of Australia including the south east and Tasmania were engulfed by fires caused by high temperature and strong winds.

(14) Halimah Yacob is the first woman Speaker of which country?

Malaysia

East Timor

Singapore

Thailand

The first woman Speaker of Singapore - Halimah Yacob is a person of Indian origin.

(15) Name the African country that has signed a peace accord with the Seleka rebels.

Sierra Leone

Central African Republic

Mali

Western Sahara

The government of Central African Republic signed a peace accord with the Seleka rebels in Libreville, Gabon to form a unity regime.

(16) Give the full form of FARC.

Revolutionary Armed Forces of China

Revolutionary Armed Forces of Cambodia

Revolutionary Armed Forces of Congo

Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and the Colombian government will resume peace talks in Cuba. They are fighting for over five decades on the issue of rural development.

(17) Which Somalian city did French commando forces attack this week to rescue a hostage?

Bosaso

Borama

Mogadishu

Berbera

The French raided Mogadishu to free a security advisor who was held by Islamist group al-Shabab. French authorities reported that 17 terrorists and 3 French, including the hostage died in the incident.

(18) In which country is Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez recovering from complexities resulting from a cancer surgery?

Chile

Uruguay

Peru

Cuba

Chavez who was re-elected to the Presidency some time back is in Cuba and is yet to take oath. The Vice President Nicolas Maduro - his chosen heir flew down to the Island nation to meet him.

(19) In which European city were three Kurdish women shot dead this week?

Amsterdam

Paris

Berlin

Madrid

Paris witnessed the killing of three Kurdish women, one of which is said to be a founding member of the banned Kurdistan Worker's Party.

(20) Chinese authorities sent 2 J-10 fighters to East China Sea after one of its Y-8 aircraft was closely scouted by F-15 fighters of another country. Name that country.

Japan

United States

United Kingdom

Vietnam

The Chinese have accused Japan of regularly scouting on its air planes in this region.

(21) Militant sect Laskar e-Jhangvi (LeJ) and separatist group United Baluch Army have claimed responsibility for separate blasts in a Pakistani city. Which city are we referring to?

Peshawar

Lahore

Karachi

Quetta

Over 100 people have died in separate incidents across Quetta. The LeJ has taken responsibility for the blast in a snooker club that killed about 100 whereas the Baluch army attacked security forces in the city.

SPORTS

(1) Who won the ATP Chennai Open 2013 on Sunday?

Roberto Bautists Agut

Janko Tipsarevic

Benoit Paire

Aljaz Bedene

Janko Tipsarevic beat Spaniard Bautists Agut inspite of losing the first set by 3-6, 6-1, 6-3. The world No 9 hails from Serbia and was the finalist last year.

(2) Who was declared as the Man of the Match in the 3rd ODI between India and Pakistan?

Phil Hughes scored 112 helping his beat beat the Lankans by 108 runs in the first ODI.

(4) Which of the following South African batsmen did not score a ton in the first innings of the second test against Kiwis?

Graeme Smith

Hashim Amla

Faf du Plessis

Dean Edgar

All batsmen except Graeme Smith who scored a half century help SA post 525/8 in the first innings.

(5) Name the Aussie cricketer who retired from the longer format of the game after the Test series against Sri Lanka.

Glen McGrath

Damien Martin

Michael Hussey

Michael Beven

Mike Hussey played 79 Tests scoring over 6,000 runs with an average of 51.52. He has been dropped for the ODI series.

(6) Which English player has signed a full contract with the ECB?

Andrew Flintoff

Kevin Pietersen

Andrew Strauss

Markus Threscothik

Kevin Pietersen came under fire in the last Test match against South Africa last year when he reportedly sent messages criticizing the then captain Strauss.

(7) Sharne Warne was involved in an ugly confrontation with which West Indian player during a Big Bash T20 match?

Dwayne Bravo

Darren Sammy

Ramnaresh Sarwan

Marlon Samuels

On filed umpires had to separate Warne and Marlon Samuels. Shane has been banned for a match and has been fined $ 4,700.

(8) Which team beat Karnataka to enter the semi finals of the Ranji Trophy?

Saurashtra

Mumbai

Uttar Pradesh

Services

Saurashtra beat Karnataka thanks to Cheteshwar Pujara who scored 352.

(9) Which Real Madrid defender has been banned for 5 matches for hurling abuses at the referee and his assistant?

Marcelo Viera

Raphael Varane

Sergio Ramos Garcia

Alvaro Arbeloa Coca

Sergio Ramos Garcia was banned for five matches by the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) after insulting the referee after he was sent off in the King's Cup victory over Celta Vigo.

(10) Which country will host the latest edition of Africa Cup of Nations football tournament?

South Africa

Morocco

Ivory Coast

Ghana

The 29th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations will be held in South Africa. The last edition was held in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea and was won by Zambia.

(11) Against which country has the AITA selected a second string side for the next Davis Cup tie following revolt by players?

Argentina

Philippines

Serbia

South Korea

The AITA refused to agree to the demands made by the rebel players under Somdev Devvarman and choose a second string side to play South Korea. The only senior player in the squad is Leander Paes.

(12) Which footballer won the Ballon D'Or this year?

Christiano Ronaldo

Robin Van Persie

Lionnel Messi

Fernando Torres

Spanish international and Barcelona star Lionnel Messi has won four Ballon D'Or titles.

ENTERTAINMENT

(1) Which of the following film industries observed a day long fast this Monday to protest against service tax imposed by the Centre?

Bollywood

Sandalwood

Kollywood

Mollywood

Many actors including superstar Rajnikant of the Tamil film industry - Kollywood took part in the protest held in front of Valluvar Kottam.

(2) Which Hollywood actor has announced that he is visiting China via Weibo - the Chinese version of Twitter?

Harrison Ford

Richard Gere

George Clooney

Brad Pitt

The Hollywood actor Brad Pitt has said that he will visit China soon. He was earlier banned from entering the country after his movie Seven Years in Tibet wherein the Chinese claimed that Communist were portrayed as impolite and rude.

(3) A southern superstar has complained that he is getting threats ahead of the release of his movie on 11th January. Who are we referring to?

Kamal Hassan

Rajnikant

Dhanush

Surya

Kamal Hassan has complained to the police that he has got threat calls asking him not to pre-release his Rs. 90 crore movie - Vishwaroopam on DTH format a day before its release in theatres.

(4) Who is the director of the Bollywood movie Matru ke Bijlee ka Mandola?

Rakyesh Omprakash Mehra

Anurag Basu

Vishal Bharadwaj

Anurag Kashyap

The movie directed by Vishal Bharadwaj stars Imran Khan as Mandola, Anuska Sharma as Bijlee and Pankaj Kapoor as Matru and was released this Friday.

(5) Name the British TV icon who police claimed on Friday had abused hundreds of people under the pretext of charity.

Brendon Coogan

Nick Baker

Sir Jimmy Savile

Craig Doyle

The British police has said that legendary TV icon, Sir Jimmy Savile has physically abused several hundred people, mostly minors and women. He was a star in the 70s and the 80s and died at the age of 84 in 2011.

BUSINESS

(1) According to the data released by the RBI, by how much has India's forex reserves declined for the week ending 4th January?

$ 0.5 billion

$ 1.5 billion

$ 2.5 billion

$ 3.5 billion

The RBI has said that the forex reserves has declined by $ 1.5 billion to $ 294.99 billion.

(2) This country's Parliament has approved a new tax legislation to boost by $ 3 billion. Name it.

Italy

Spain

Portugal

Greece

The Parliament of Greece has approved new legisltion to tax citizens earning more than $ 42,000 annually to raise money under committments to international creditors.

(3) Which of the following is not amongst the private entities looking to pick up a stake in Rs. 300 crore Ratnakar bank?

Aditya Birla Private Equity

Bank of America

Faering Capital

Norwest Ventures Partners

Bank of America is not amongst the private equities who are likely to invest in Maharashtra based Ratnakar Bank.

(4) According to a report by Heritage Foundation, what is India's rank on economic freedom in the world?